Commonwealth Secretariat

Education for Sustainable Development in Small Island Developing States Commonwealth Secretariat

Education for sustainable development (ESD) is an essential element of the global response to environmental challenges. It helps young people understand and address the impact of global warming, encourages changes in their attitudes and behavior to help mitigate environmental change, and gives them the knowledge and skills necessary for them to adapt to that change.

This study analyzes good practices and gaps in ESD implementation in ten small island states vulnerable to climate change: Dominica, Guyana, the Maldives, Mauritius, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon Islands and Tonga. It focuses particularly on climate change education, and provides practical and realistic recommendations on how ESD may be better integrated in education policy and strategy and delivered more comprehensively.